- Indian Heritage
- Culture
National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA)
The National Gallery of Modern Art, Bengaluru was set up in the premises of the Manikyavelu Mansion at 49 Palace Road, Bangalore and opened to the public on 18th February, 2009. Spread over an area of 3.5 acres, the gracious heritage building was transformed from a residence into an Art Gallery, with a display space of 1551 square meters to which a new gallery block with a display space of 1260 sq. m. was added. The architecture of the additional block was designed in such a fashion that it merges with the style and ambience of the heritage Manikyavelu Mansion while at the same time fulfilling the requirements of a modern museum.
The Bengaluru NGMA is run and administered as a subordinate office of the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It is one of the three National Galleries of Modern Art – the other two being in Delhi and Mumbai. The Gallery stands as a repository of the cultural ethos of the country and showcases Indian art starting from the early 18th century till the present times.
The collection of NGMA mainly comprises of paintings, sculptures, graphic prints and examples of early photography in India which showcased the historical development of modern art in India. The display includes Indian miniatures, colonial artists, Bengal School and post-independence artists which led to the birth of modern and post-modern art of today. In addition to permanent display of the paintings and sculptures, this NGMA also showcases national and international exhibitions regularly.
- Modern Indian history
- The Freedom Struggle
- Post-independence
- Indian Society
A. population and associated issues
B. poverty and developmental issues
C.urbanization
7. Geographical features
8.Indian Constitution
9. Polity
10. Governance
A. institutions
B. regulatory
C. Government policies
D. role of NGOs
E. measures
11. Social Justice
A. Welfare schemes
SHRESHTA SCHEME
The objective of SHRESHTA is to enhance the reach of development Intervention of the Government and to fill the gap in service deficient SCs dominant areas, in the sector of education through the efforts of grant-in-aid institutions (run by NGOs) and residential high schools offering high quality education. The scheme aims to provide environment for socio-economic upliftment and overall development of the Scheduled Castes (SCs) by providing financial assistance to best private residential schools affiliated by CBSE/ State Board in class 9th & 11th for completion of education till 12th standard. Further, financial assistance is also provided to Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)/ Voluntary Organisations (VOs) for running residential , non-residential schools and hostels having adequate infrastructure and maintain good academic quality for SC students.
There is provision of Bridge course in the scheme to ensure that the SC students so admitted can catch up with the rest of the class. Bridge courses targets on enhancing the capability of the student to easily adopt to the environment of the school.
The scheme is being implemented in two modes. In mode-I, each year a specified number of meritorious SC students around 3000 in States/UTs are selected through the National Entrance Test for SHRESHTA (NETS) conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) and admitted in the private residential schools affiliated to CBSE/State Boards. Under mode-2, financial assistance is provided to the NGOs for running the schools/hostel projects related to Education sector to Scheduled Caste students. 13500 slots every year have been year marked for SC students.
B Health
C. Education
D. Human Resources
The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024’
“Prevention of Unfair Means Bill, 2024” will also cover entrance examinations held by the Union Public Service Commission, the Staff Selection Commission, the Railways, banking recruitment examinations and all computer-based examinations conducted by the National Testing Agency.
Earlier, initiating discussion in the house on the Bill, the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh said, one after another we have witnessed incidents of malpractices, paper leak, impersonation etc from various parts of the country. In Rajasthan, there have been 12 incidents of malpractices since 2018 while the Sub-Inspector Recruitment scam surfaced in Jammu & Kashmir in March, 2022 and SSC Combined Graduate Exam in 2017, he said.
“There are several instances but prominently, in West Bengal, the Diploma in Elementary Education paper in November, 2022 was leaked, again in the same state in February, 2023 English paper leaked besides School Service Commission, West Bengal also leaked. In December, 2022 Teacher Recruitment Scam unravelled in Rajasthan while in February, 2022 the Rajasthan Eligibility Exam for Teachers was also plagued by malpractices and the exam had to re-conducted. In May, 2022 Rajasthan Police Constable Recruitment Exam was hit by a scam,” he said.
Cutting across party lines, Dr Jitendra Singh said, the matter is above politics and that there is no difference of opinion among members of the House. The Bill is aimed at curbing corrupt practice by few unscrupulous elements that plays havoc with the future of our youth, destroying their careers and aspirations and occasionally resulting in fatal suicides, he said.
E. poverty and hunger
World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan
he General Conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO), in its 90th Session on 3 June 2002, inter-alia, adopted that the promotion and strengthening of the identity of cooperatives should be encouraged on the basis of:
(i) cooperative values of self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity; as well as ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others; and
(ii) cooperative principles as developed by the international cooperative movement. These principles are: voluntary and open membership; democratic member control; member economic participation; autonomy and independence; education, training and information; cooperation among cooperatives; and concern for community.
India fares well on above international parameters in the cooperative sector. The cooperative principles are already enshrined in the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002. In order to promote and strengthen the cooperatives in India, the Ministry of Cooperation, since its inception on 6th July 2021, has undertaken several initiatives to realize the vision of “Sahakar-se-Samriddhi” and to strengthen and deepen the cooperative movement from Primary to Apex level Cooperatives in the country. A list of initiatives taken and progress made so far is in Annexure I.
As per the World Cooperative Monitor (WCM) 2022, Cooperative organizations in India like IFFCO and GCMMF are ranked among the top two in the agriculture sector, ULCCS is ranked second in the Industry and utility sector and 12 cooperative banks (seven StCB and four UCB and one credit society) are among top 300 ranked cooperatives in the world.
Bharat’ Rice
The launch of retail sale of ‘Bharat’ Rice will increase supplies in the market at affordable rates and will help in continued moderation of prices of this important food item. This is the latest among a series of steps taken by the Government of India towards the welfare of consumers.
‘Bharat’ Rice will be available at all physical and mobile outlets of Kendriya Bhandar, National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) and National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF) from today and will be expanded to other retail outlets and e- commerce platforms. ‘Bharat’ brand rice will be sold in family friendly 5 Kg and 10 Kg Bags. Bharat Rice will be sold at maximum retail price (MRP) of Rs. 29/kg.
Bharat Atta is already being sold by these 3 agencies @ Rs. 27.50 per Kg in 5Kg and 10 Kg packsfrom their physical retail outlets, mobile vans as well as through some other retail networks and e commerce platforms. Similarly, Bharat Dal (chana dal) is also being sold by these 3 agencies @ Rs.60 per kg for 1kg pack and Rs.55 per kg for 30 kg pack along with onions @ Rs.25 per kg. Apart from these 3 agencies, state- controlled cooperatives of Telangana, Maharastra and Gujarat are also involved in retail sale of Bharat Dal. With the launch of sale of ‘Bharat’ Rice, consumers can get rice, atta, dal as well as onions from these outlets at fair and affordable prices.
INDIA AGEING REPORT-2023
The “India Ageing Report 2023” has been prepared by the United Nations Population Fund(UNFPA) and International Institute of Population Sciences(IIPS), on welfare of senior citizens in India. Salient findings of the report are as under:-
- Convincing senior citizens to use digital platforms and providing the training and necessary gadgets for their daily use is a challenge.
- Mental health issues like Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are still considered a stigma in society.
- With Indian population ageing, the disability becomes a major concern which in turn increases the caregiving burden.
- Poverty, lack of social security in old age, poor public health facilities, illiteracy and digital ignorance created additional challenges and general disaster relief work till recently did not often include older persons as a separate group.
- Corporate and NGOs have made efforts for joyful aging, social assistance, old age homes
The Government of India has been addressing the challenges and opportunities related to elderly care through various constitutional provisions, like, Article 41 of the Constitution of India; through laws, like the, Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007; policies, like the, National Policy on Older Persons, 1999; Schemes and Programmes, like, Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana, Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme, Atal Pension Yojana, Senior Citizens Savings Scheme, among others.
12. International relations
A. India and its neighbourhood
BIMSTEC
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organization that was established on 06 June 1997 with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration. Initially known as BIST-EC (Bangladesh-India-Sri Lanka-Thailand Economic Cooperation), the organisation is now known as BIMSTEC and comprises seven Member States with the admission of Myanmar on 22 December 1997, and Bhutan and Nepal in February 2004. On 06 June 1997, representatives of the Governments of Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand came together in Bangkok, and signed the ‘Declaration on the Establishment of the Bangladesh–India–Sri Lanka–Thailand Economic Cooperation (BIST-EC)’
The Declaration which was signed by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh, Abul Hasan Chowdhury, the Minister of State of the Republic of India Saleem Iqbal Shervani, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka D.P. Wickremasinghe, and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Thailand Pitak Intrawityanunt later came to be known as the ‘Bangkok Declaration’. The main aim of the regional group was the promotion of economic cooperation between countries bordering the Bay of Bengal. With Myanmar joining on 22 December 1997, the group was renamed BIMST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand Economic Cooperation), and with the admission of Nepal and Bhutan during the 6th Ministerial Meeting in Thailand in July 2004, the grouping was renamed during the First Summit in Bangkok on 31 July 2004 as the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).
BIMSTEC’s institutional evolution has been gradual. Following a decision at the Third BIMSTEC Summit in 2014, the BIMSTEC Secretariat was established in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in that same year, providing an institutionalized framework for deepening and enhancing cooperation.
Being a sector-driven grouping, cooperation within BIMSTEC had initially focused on six sectors in 1997 (trade, technology, energy, transport, tourism, and fisheries) and expanded in 2008 to incorporate agriculture, public health, poverty alleviation, counter-terrorism, environment, culture, people-to-people contact, and climate change. Subsequently, following steps to rationalize and reorganize sectors and sub-sectors, cooperation was reorganized in 2021 under the following sectors and sub-sectors led by the respective Member States:
B. groupings and agreements
C.Indian diaspora
13. Economic Development
A. Government Budgeting
Agriculture Budget
| Central Sector Schemes | |
| 1 | Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) |
| 2 | Formation And Promotion Of 10,000 Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) |
| 3 | Modified Interest Subvention Scheme (MISS) |
| 4 | National Bee Keeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) |
| 5 | Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA) |
| 6 | Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)/Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (RWBCIS) |
| 7 | Pradhan Mantri Kisan Maan Dhan Yojana (PM-KMY) |
| 8 | Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) |
| *** | |
| Centrally Sponsored Scheme (Krishonnati Yojana) | |
| 9 | Digital Agriculture |
| 10 | Integrated Scheme for Agricultural Marketing |
| 11 | Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) |
| 12 | Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER) |
| 13 | National Food Security and Nutrition Mission (NFSNM) |
| 14 | National Food Security Mission (Oilseeds) |
| 15 | National Mission on Edible Oil (NMEO-OP) |
| 16 | Sub-Mission on Agricultural Extension (SMAE) |
| *** | |
| Centrally Sponsored Scheme (Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY)) | |
| 17 | Agroforestry |
| 18 | Crop Diversification Programme (CDP) |
| 19 | Paramparagat Krishi VikasYojana (PKVY) |
| 20 | Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) |
| 21 | Rainfed Area Development (RAD) |
| 22 | Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana- DPR (RKVY-DPR) |
| 23 | Soil Health and Fertility |
| 24 | Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) |
B. industrial
India Energy Week 2024
In this second edition of India Energy Week, I extend warm greetings to all. It gives us immense pleasure that this event is taking place in Goa, a state renowned for its vibrant energy. Known for its hospitality, Goa captivates tourists from around the globe with its beauty and rich culture. Presently, Goa is also scaling new heights of development. Therefore, as we convene to discuss environmental consciousness and a Sustainable Future, Goa stands as an ideal venue. I am confident that our esteemed foreign guests attending this summit will carry cherished memories of Goa with them for a lifetime.
This India Energy Week event is being convened at a pivotal juncture. In the initial six months of this fiscal year alone, Bharat’s GDP rate has surged by over 7.5%, a figure surpassing global growth estimates. Presently, Bharat stands as the world’s fastest-growing economy. Furthermore, the IMF has recently made a forecast of a similar pace of growth for us. Experts worldwide now anticipate Bharat’s ascent to the rank of the third-largest economy in the world. Given its pivotal role in Bharat’s growth narrative, the energy sector’s significance is naturally on the rise.
Achieving Aatmanirbharta in energy requirements has been a key focus area of the Prime Minister. In yet another step in this direction, India Energy Week 2024 is being held from 6 – 9 February in Goa and is India’s largest and only all-encompassing energy exhibition and conference, bringing together the entire energy value chain, and will serve as a catalyst for India’s energy transition goals. The Prime Minister also held a roundtable with Global oil & gas CEOs and experts.
Encouraging and fostering startups and integrating them into the energy value chain will be an important focus for India Energy Week 2024. It is expected to witness the participation of around 17 Energy ministers from different countries, 35,000+ attendees and more than 900 exhibitors. It will have six dedicated country pavilions – Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Russia, the UK and the USA. A special Make in India Pavilion is also being organized to showcase innovative solutions which Indian MSMEs are spearheading in the energy sector.
MICRO IRRIGATION
The Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare implemented the Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) of Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) in the Country from the year 2015-16 to 2021-22 as a component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY). From the year 2022-23, the scheme is being implemented under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY). PDMC scheme focuses on enhancing water use efficiency at farm level through Micro Irrigation, namely, Drip and Sprinkler Irrigation systems.
Financial Assistance @ 55% for Small & Marginal farmers and @ 45% for other farmers is provided by the Government for installation of Micro Irrigation under the Scheme. In addition, some States provide additional incentives/top up subsidy for encouraging farmers to adopt Micro Irrigation.
Further, 25% higher unit cost is taken into consideration for calculation of subsidy for the North Eastern and Himalayan states and 15% higher for States with low penetration of Micro Irrigation for larger adoption of Micro Irrigation systems by the farmers under the PDMC scheme.
Farmers are encouraged to take advantage of the PDMC scheme by giving wide publicity to the scheme through press & print media, publication of leaflets/booklets, organization of workshops, exhibitions, farmer fairs, information on State/Government of India web portals etc.
To facilitate the States in mobilising resources for expanding coverage of micro irrigation, Government of India has created Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) with National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) with initial corpus of Rs. 5000 Crore. States can avail loan from MIF for taking up special and innovative projects for expanding coverage of Micro Irrigation and also for incentivising micro irrigation beyond the provisions available under PDMC scheme to encourage farmers. Government of India provides interest subvention @3% on the loan availed by the States which is met from PDMC Scheme.
Minimum Support Price for various crops
The Government of India fixes Minimum Support Price (MSP) for 22 mandated agricultural crops on the basis of the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP), views of State Governments and Central Ministries/Departments concerned. Government in its Union Budget for 2018-19 had announced the pre- determined principle to keep MSP at levels of one and half times of the cost of production. Accordingly, MSPs for all mandated crops kharif, rabi and other commercial crops have been increased with a return of at least 50 percent over all India weighted average cost of production from the agricultural year 2018-19.
To realize the objectives of MSP Policy, Government extends price support for paddy and wheat through the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and State Agencies. Under this policy food grains offered by farmers within the stipulated period & conforming to the specifications prescribed by Government are purchased at MSP by the State Government agencies and FCI for Central Pool. Additionally, Oilseeds, pulses and copra of Fair Average Quality (FAQ) are procured from registered farmers under Price Support Scheme under Umbrella Scheme of PM-AASHA, as per its guidelines at MSP in consultation with the concerned State Governments, when market price of these produce fall below the MSP. Cotton and Jute are also procured by Government at MSP through Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) and Jute Corporation of India (JCI), respectively. Government’s price policy is to ensure remunerative prices to farmers by offering to procure their produce at MSP. However, farmers are free to sell their produce to the Government procurement agencies at MSP or in the open market, whichever is advantageous to them.
PMFMES scheme
As part of Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) is implementing a centrally sponsored “PM Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme” for providing financial, technical and business support for setting up / upgradation of micro food processing enterprises in the country. The PMFME Scheme primarily adopts One District One Product (ODOP) approach to reap the benefit of scale in terms of procurement of inputs, availing common services and marketing of products. It provides the framework for value chain development and alignment of support infrastructure.
Freight Transportation on National Waterways
Ministry of Port Shipping and Waterways has waived off the waterway usage charges at a rate of Rs 0.02 per gross registered tonnage (GRT) per kilometer for plying of Inland cargo vessels and Rs. 0.05 per gross registered tonnage (GRT) per kilometer for plying of Cruise vessels on national waterways to promote inland waterways as a supplementary, eco-friendly and cheaper mode of transport.
9 National Waterways (NWs) in the State of Karnataka and 3 NWs interstate with Karnataka have been declared along with 111 NWs vide National Waterways Act, 2016 as detailed at Annexure-2. Feasibility Studies/Detailed Project Reports of the Waterways have been completed. As per findings of the Study Reports, 2 NWs of Karnatakanamely river Kali (NW-52) & river Sharavati (NW-90) and one interstate NW-104 (river Tungabhadra) have been found feasible for tourism and ferry services.
For development of 2 floating jetties on river Kali (NW-52), Rs. 2.7 cr. has been allocatedto State Government of Karnataka by Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI). Also, 4 waterways development proposals for construction of passenger jetties and infrastructure facilities at cost of Rs. 76.28 crore have been approved for financial assistance under Sagarmala Scheme as detailed at Annexure-3
E.issues
14. Technology
ANRF Act comes into force
he provisions of the Anusandhan Research Foundation (ANRF) Act have been brought into force on February 5, 2024 in line with the commitment of the Government to boost Research and Innovation as the fulcrum of growth and development of the country.
It establishes the ANRF, that will seed, grow and promote Research and Development (R&D) and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India’s universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.
The Government has appointed Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST) as the interim Chief Executive Officer of ANRF.
ANRF is a government’s strong move to provide a high-level strategic direction for research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the fields of natural sciences including mathematical sciences, engineering and technology, environmental and earth sciences, health and agriculture and have long-term effect, long term outcomes for each citizen.
“The ANRF act coming into force is a heartening piece of news for Scientists, Researchers, innovators and StartUps. For the first time after independence, under the leadership of the Honourable PM Shri Narendra Modi, India now has a National Research Foundation called Anusandhan”, said Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh in his tweet today.
“The ANRF, operationalized by the DST, aims to boost R&D funding from various sources including industry, encouraging private sector involvement. It will also promote interdisciplinary research, with the goal of propelling India into the league of developed nations and making the country a global science and research player during the Amritkaal,” said Secretary Department of Science and Technology (DST) Professor Abhay Karandikar.
15. Environment
16. Security
Central Share for Naxal Eliminating Campaign
As per Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India, subjects of Police and Public Order are with the State Governments. However, the Government of India (GoI) has been supplementing the efforts of States to address left wing extremism.
As per the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission, the State share in the net proceeds of Union taxes was raised from 32% to 42%. Through this step, sufficient flexibility was provided to the States to conceive and implement the Schemes/programmes suited to their local needs/aspirations and bridge the developmental deficit gaps in the backward districts. Accordingly, some of the schemes are implemented on sharing basis in the ratio of 60(Centre):40 (State) since 2017, as per the recommendations of the Sub-Group of Chief Ministers on the rationalization of Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) constituted in 2015 in pursuance of the decision taken in the Governing Council of the NITI Aayog.
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has 03 major schemes namely Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme, Special Infrastructure Scheme (SIS) and Special Central Assistance (SCA) Scheme through which funds are given to States to tackle left wing extremism.
Under SRE, expenditure incurred by the States on Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) is reimbursed on 100% basis, while for other items the reimbursement is made on sharing basis in the ratio of 60(Centre):40 (State).
SIS is implemented on sharing basis in the ratio of 60(Centre):40 (State).
Under SCA funds are provided to States to fill critical gaps in Public Infrastructure & Services in 30 Most LWE Affected Districts. This is a 100% centrally sponsored scheme.
Further, the annual outlays have been substantially increased to support States for combating left wing extremism. An amount of Rs. 479.80 crore was released to Chhattisgarh by the MHA to combat left wing extremism during 06 years between 2011-12 to 2016-17, whereas Rs. 1666.40 crore have been released to the State under such schemes during last 06 years between 2017-18 & 2022-23.
Similarly, an amount of Rs. 2172.79 crore was released by MHA to all the LWE affected States under such schemes during 06 years between 2011-12 to 2016-17, whereas Rs. 5601.28 crore have been released during last 06 years between 2017-18 & 2022-23.
17. Disaster Management